Driven to Despair - Report on DVLA medical section

SteveBarnsleytrucker:

damoq:

SteveBarnsleytrucker:

damoq:
I was half expecting to be making a post on this thread regarding my licence and the DVLA medical group messing me about. But not so.

Was diagnosed with a detached retina at the end of January, operation to repair it done on 6th Feb. Phoned the DVLA to report my condition while still off on the sick. Got a reference number from them to put on the V1V form and was told I had 21 days to return the completed forms. Was told I could still drive trucks in the mean time provided my doctor/consultant/ optician says I was fit to do so. Was due a check up at hospital with consultant a week after notifying DVLA anyway and he says I was fine to drive, plus I booked an appointment with optician for an eye test to double check. Sent forms back to DVLA and within 2 weeks they sent me a letter requesting I go to Specsavers for one of their approved eye exams. Went for the eye test last Monday and everything fine. Got a letter back yesterday from the DVLA saying they were happy with the results and I can keep my hgv licence.

I think I may have been lucky as I never actually had my licence revoked or advised by a professional not to drive. Had this been the case, I reckon it could have been a different outcome.

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How long you got your HGV license back for? I got mine back for a 3 year period after my detached retina operation and then on another 3 year period after the licence had run out and I had the eye test done at Specsavers.

There was no mention of how long I’ve got it back for. Just says that if I ever get advised to stop driving or if my eyesight fails to meet the standards, I’ve to inform the DVLA immediately.

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Here in lies the problem with the DVLA 2 different drivers I.e me and Damoq (nothing against him by the way it’s not his fault) with the exact same diagnosis of detached retina both been treated in completely different ways by the medical department.
I had my license revoked after having my eye test done at least 4 week too early I found out off my consultant and failing the test ( they never give you the exact results) I did the exact same test after allowing my eye the right amount of time to recover from the treatment and passed by not missing any dots on the field vision test.
I then had to wait weeks until they came back saying I had got my HGV back on a 3 year period and then getting it back again on another 3 year period where I’ll have to go for another eye test where as Damoq if I’m reading correctly has got his HGV entitlement back without losing it and also not on a short term period where he then has to go back and prove his eyesight has not deteriorated.

I don’t understand why both of us with the same condition have been treated do differently by the DVLA MG! At no point did the DVLA tell me not to drive. The said not to drive if my doc/consultant/optician advised me not to do so. I was obviously advised not to drive any vehicle after the op until my first check up at the hospital, which was 8 days after my op, but I was told at that appointment I could drive again. I was obviously not going to go back driving trucks again as I still had 2 weeks left on my sick line to run. But the consultant said if I felt fine after that, he seen no reason why I shouldn’t go back to work as he was happy with how everything was. I booked an appointment with the opticians just before my line ran out to make sure my eyes were good enough for driving group 2 vehicles for my own piece of mind plus as proof that I could drive. Optician said vision was fine so I went back to work. Letter arrived from DVLA telling me to book one of their Specsavers eye tests which was done last Monday, all good and letter arrived from DVLA on Saturday morning saying they were satisfied I was fit to keep my license with no mention of any restrictions or anything else.

Did a medical professional tell you at any point you were not fit to drive trucks?

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